Every week a breath of country air comes to our TV screens through Yorkshire Television's 'Emmerdale Farm' The story of the Sugdens, the Merricks, Amos Brierly, Seth Armstrong and the people of Beckindale has won a devoted following at home and overseas.
This is the first official guide to the hugely popular series, which has recently celebrated it's 16th birthday. Richly illustrated with many colour photographs from the archives of Yorkshire Television, The Official Companion chronicles the story of the farm and it's characters, and takes us behind the scenes to reveal the production processes both in the studio and on location. Also included is an 'Emmerdale Farm' quiz. And, like the series it shows the splendor of the Yorkshire Dales and the sturdy character of the people who live and work there.
For everyone for whom 'Emmerdale Farm' is essential viewing The Official Companion is indispensable.

Celebrating 21 years of Emmerdale:

  • a year by year diary of events in Beckindale.
  • incisive biographies of all Emmerdale stars
  • a chance to meet the actors
  • revelations from behind the scences
  • more than 100 photographs

 
The family is the institution around which village life has traditionally revolved - and - Emmerdale is no exception. The Emmerdale Family Album presents a fascinating history of the families that have come and gone in the Yorkshire village since Emmerdale Farm first came to our screens in October 1972.
Monday 16th October 1.30pm saw the launch of Emmerdale Farm. Twenty five years later Emmerdale is an institution attracting audiences of upto 13 million. In 1997, it's silver jubilee year the progtram increased it's output to 3 times a week. And moved it's out door filming to a purpose built set on the Harewood Estate, near Leeds.
In this official celebration of Emmerdale's 25th anniversary, author Antony Hayward has been given unique access to the cast and crew of Emmerdale. He traces the serial's history, looks at the real life dramas behind the scenes and interviews old and new members of the cast.
The story of Emmerdale, a tale of love and loss, of laughter and tears, tells of a community time locked in England's rural past meeting the irrisistable challenge of the modern world.
In the begining there was Sam Pearson, his daughter Annie and her children Jack, Peggy and Joe Sugden, mourning the death of thier father Jacob, whose family had worked Emmerdale for more than 100 years.
In October 1972, Emmerdale still belonged to the nineteenth century. Archaic traditions bound the village to the past more surely even than the outdate-of-date farming methods which Jacob Sugden employed, or the old fashoined living conditions at the farmhouse, which had yet to include a telephone.
CAST LIST
Annie Sugden Sheila Mercier
Henry Wilks Arthur Pentelow
Amos Brearly Ronald Magill
Matt Skilbeck Fredrick Pyne
Dolly Skilbeck Jean Rogers
Jack Sugden Clive Hornby
Pat Sugden Helen Weir
Jackie Merrick Ian Sharrock
Sandie Merrick Jane Hutcheson
Rev. Donald Hinton Hugh Manning
Seth Armstrong Stan Richards
Alan Turner Richard Thorp
Mrs Bates Diana Davies
Joe Sugden Frazier hines
Walter Al Dixon
Sam Skilbeck Benjamin Whitehead
Producer Richard Handford
Executive Producer Michael Glynn
Created by Kevin Laffan.

 
The outside world was introduced to the life of Beckindale and the family at Emmerdale Farm in the Autumn of 1972. That first visit to Emmerdale came at the time of great sadness for Annie Sugden and her family, with the funeral of Jacob, who had been Annie's childhood sweetheart and her husband since 1945.
Much of the land around Beckindale belonged, at that time to local aquire George Verney, w hose death a few years later would mean crippling death duties for his family and open the way for a farming conglomerate, NY estates, to take over the land and the tenanted farms.
At first it was intended to be no more than a brief television stay in this beautifil corner of the Yorkshire Dales on an occasional afternoon. But the stories of the Sugdens and their friends grew in popularity and more and more people wanted to share the ups and downs of Emmerdale folk. so Yorkshire television continued with the twice weekly drama series which over the past 15 years, has remained firmly in the affections of millions of people.